Adapted from a Purple Carrot recipe, cashew cream sauce and sautéed leeks tossed together with artichokes then baked with crispy crumb topping makes for a simple and delicious pasta dish. Yum.
INGREDIENTS
12 oz pasta of choice
1 cup cashews
1.5 cup water
1/4 cup lemon juice
1.5 Tbsp Dijon mustard
3 cloves garlic
5 Tbsp nutritional yeast, divided
2 leeks, trimmed, washed and sliced
15 oz can artichoke hearts, drained & roughly chopped
1/3 cup panko crumbs
1.5 Tbsp vegan butter
2 Tbsp chopped parsley(optional)
DIRECTIONS
1. Soak cashews in 1.5 cups boiling water for 15 minutes. Prepare pasta according to package directions, reserving 1.5 cups pasta water for sauce.
2. Add lemon juice, cashews and their soaking water, Dijon mustard, garlic, 4 Tbsp nutritional yeast, 3/4 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper into a blender. Blend on high until smooth.
3. In a large nonstick skillet over medium heat with 2 Tbsp olive oil, sauté the leeks, stirring occasionally so not to brown, until soft approximately 8 to 10 minutes. Season well with salt and pepper.
4. Once leeks are softened, stir in 1.5 cups reserved pasta water, artichokes and cashew sauce from blender; bring to a simmer. Stir in the cooked pasta and season to taste with salt and pepper.
5. Set broiler on high. Transfer pasta to a lightly sprayed baking dish(or use skillet if oven-proof). Melt vegan butter the stir together with panko crumbs, remaining 1 Tbsp nutritional yeast and chopped parsley(optional). Sprinkle crumbs over pasta. Broil until crumbs browned and crisp, approximately 4 to 5 minutes.
